Description
The Inspiration of Saint Matthew is an altarpiece by Caravaggio from 1602: the old evangelist, in a blazing orange cloak, leans over a writing desk with one knee on a stool that tips towards us, and turns to look up at an angel who swoops down in white drapery and counts off on his fingers what Matthew is to write. The original, oil on canvas, is 292 cm high and 186 cm wide and still hangs above the altar of the Contarelli Chapel in the church of San Luigi dei Francesi in Rome. Our painter makes it for you as a hand-painted work in oil on canvas in 8 portrait sizes, from 40 x 60 to 116 x 180 cm, or made to measure, and before it ships we show you the finished painting in a photograph.
| Title: | The Inspiration of Saint Matthew |
| Other titles: | San Matteo e l’angelo · Die Inspiration des heiligen Matthäus |
| Painter: | Michelangelo Merisi da Caravaggio (1571–1610) |
| Year painted: | 1602 |
| Original size: | 292 cm x 186 cm (height x width) |
| Original technique: | Oil on canvas |
| Painting style: | Baroque, tenebrism |
| Located at: | Contarelli Chapel, San Luigi dei Francesi, Rome |
| Our reproduction: | Hand-painted oil on canvas, 8 sizes or made to measure |
The Inspiration of Saint Matthew – Caravaggio
What does The Inspiration of Saint Matthew show?
The canvas is tall and narrow. At the bottom is Saint Matthew, an old man with a grey beard, wrapped in a cloak of glowing orange. Pen in hand, he bends over the desk and rests one knee on a plain wooden stool, one corner of which juts past the edge of the scene as if it might topple out towards us at any moment.
Matthew looks up over his shoulder. Above him an angel plunges down out of the dark, wrapped entirely in a rippling white sheet that curls around him like a whirlwind. With the fingers of one hand he counts on the other, point by point.
Everything else is darkness. There is no room, no window, no shelf: only two large figures, a desk and a stool, cut out of the black ground by the light.
What is the story behind the scene?
In Christian tradition the apostle Matthew wrote the Gospel that bears his name. Caravaggio shows the moment the work begins: the angel dictates, and Matthew listens and writes it down.
Wikipedia describes the angel as belonging to an airy, sublime dimension, while Matthew is restless, as though he has just rushed to his desk. His face is sober and attentive, with no rapture in it.
This was not the first painting for the altar. The first version, Saint Matthew and the Angel, was rejected and was later destroyed by accident in the Second World War. The second came quickly: Caravaggio was paid for it in September 1602.
Why is this altarpiece so well known?
Because it belongs to one of the best-known cycles of the Baroque. Three of Caravaggio’s canvases on Saint Matthew hang in the Contarelli Chapel, and this one takes the centre: above the altar, between the larger, earlier canvases of his calling and his martyrdom.
Because it shows how little Caravaggio needs for a great scene. Instead of grand architecture he sets two bright, coloured bodies in the dark, joined by a diagonal running from the angel’s hands to the evangelist’s face.
And because it tells its story with familiar things: a wooden desk, a simple stool, an open book. The English Wikipedia article sums up how the work came about and what it shows.
Where is the original of The Inspiration of Saint Matthew?
It is not in a museum but in the place it was painted for: above the altar of the Contarelli Chapel in San Luigi dei Francesi, the church of the French congregation in Rome. The commission goes back to the French cardinal Matthieu Cointerel, Contarelli in Italian, after whom the chapel is named.
In February 1602, once the first two canvases were already in place in the chapel, Caravaggio was commissioned to paint the altarpiece, due by Pentecost of that year. Beside it you can still see The Calling of Saint Matthew and The Martyrdom of Saint Matthew, which we do not offer.
The Inspiration of Saint Matthew or another Caravaggio?
The Inspiration of Saint Matthew is a canvas painting for a quiet wall: a study, a library, a writing corner or any room where people read and write.
If you like the theme of apostles being called, a natural partner is The Calling of Saints Peter and Andrew, in which Christ summons the two fishermen brothers. A scene at table also appears in The Supper at Emmaus, where two disciples recognise the risen Christ at the breaking of the bread.
More sombre is The Entombment of Christ, a scene of quiet grief around the body of Christ.
All the famous Caravaggio paintings we offer are gathered on the Caravaggio page, and each of them is painted only once you order it.
How does our painter paint your Inspiration of Saint Matthew?
We begin painting your copy only after you order it, in oil on canvas and layer by layer. First the painter lays down a dark underpainting and draws in the long diagonal from the angel’s hands to the evangelist’s head.
Then he builds up the colour. The orange cloak takes several layers, from deep brick in the folds to light ridges on the shoulder, and the angel’s drapery a cool white with grey shadows.
Last comes the darkness around the figures. The result is a Caravaggio reproduction with visible brushwork that reads differently by daylight than under a lamp in the evening. An oil painting reproduction of this kind slowly becomes part of the room.
Which size for which wall?
In short: the painting is upright and wants a tall wall rather than a wide one; 40 x 60 or 48 x 75 cm is enough beside a door, while for a tall wall in a living area or a stairwell choose 100 x 159 or 116 x 180 cm.
We paint The Inspiration of Saint Matthew in 8 portrait sizes (width x height): 40 x 60, 48 x 75, 55 x 85, 64 x 100, 70 x 115, 80 x 126, 100 x 159 and 116 x 180 cm. The original is larger than all of them: the biggest size, 116 x 180 cm, is 70 cm narrower and 112 cm lower.
The middle sizes, 55 x 85 and 64 x 100 cm, sit well with a desk or a bookcase, and 70 x 115 or 80 x 126 cm above a chest of drawers or in a hallway. As a painting for the living room it works best on an open wall where nothing cuts into its height.
Can I order a different size or a frame?
Yes. The angel at the top and the stool at the bottom come almost to the edge, so for other proportions we adapt the composition in a way that keeps wings and foot whole. Send us the width and height you need, and we will reply with a price and the time it will take.
Your Matthew can travel rolled, on a stretcher bar or in a frame. Stretching and framing are done in our workshop in Slovenia, where every other painting we sell is also made ready for the journey. Frames are chosen in our 3D app, which is for frame choice only; seeing the painting on your own wall is a separate service.
When will the painting arrive, and how is it delivered?
Work on your Matthew starts the day your order reaches us, and 15 to 45 working days later he is ready to travel. Before it leaves we send you a photograph of the finished painting; if you want a change, we make it. Deliveries within Slovenia and the rest of the EU carry no customs duty, and every order is covered by our returns policy.
It makes a good gift for anyone who writes, teaches or is learning, and for lovers of sacred art. If you are unsure which size is right, give a wall art voucher and leave the choice to the recipient.
Frequently asked questions
Where can I see the original?
Above the altar of the Contarelli Chapel in the church of San Luigi dei Francesi in Rome.
What is the angel doing?
He comes down from above and counts on his fingers, while Matthew listens and writes the Gospel.
Is it a print?
No. Each one is a hand-painted copy: our painter works it with brush and oil paint on canvas.
How big is the original?
It is 292 cm high and 186 cm wide, larger than any of our sizes; the biggest is 116 x 180 cm.
What happened to the first version?
It was rejected and later destroyed by accident in the Second World War.
Does it suit a bedroom or a study?
It suits a study, a library or a hallway better than a bedroom, since it shows a scene of concentrated writing.
Can you paint it in another size?
Yes, to measure as well: send us the width and height and we will give you a price and a date.
How long does it take?
Between 15 and 45 working days; a photograph of the finished painting reaches you before it is shipped.
- Subject: the old Saint Matthew in an orange cloak at his desk and an angel dictating the Gospel to him from above.
- Original: 1602, oil on canvas, 292 x 186 cm, Contarelli Chapel, San Luigi dei Francesi, Rome.
- Ours: painted by hand in oil on canvas, in 8 portrait sizes from 40 x 60 to 116 x 180 cm or made to measure.
- Worth knowing: Caravaggio painted two versions for this altar; the first was rejected.
